MONTREAL -- A corruption inquiry prosecutor accused a former federal Tory organizer Monday of lying about how much illicit cash he saw at the municipal party of disgraced former Montreal mayor Gerald Tremblay.

Martin Dumont, whose testimony in October was followed by Tremblay's resignation six days later, appeared shaken and red-faced as he was confronted with contradictory testimony from another witness.

Dumont had said a female staffer complained to him in 2005 about being asked to count $850,000 in cash at the headquarters of Tremblay's Union Montreal party.

The staffer, secretary Alexandra Pion, testified Monday that she did see a large number of $20 bills in a safe at the party office and was asked to count them.

But she also said she refused the request and that the amount of money was far less than $850,000.

Pion added that she has never met with or spoken to Martin Dumont and that she only learned of the $850,000 amount when he mentioned it at the inquiry in October.

Over the objections of Dumont's lawyer, the inquiry called the former organizer back to the stand an hour after Pion, to be grilled by prosecutor Denis Gallant.

Dumont admitted to a "mistake" in possibly mixing up details from two different incidents, but he maintained that "someone" at the party mentioned the $850,000 in cash. The prosecutor pressed him on the matter, raising his voice slightly.

"I would suggest to you that no one ever told you they counted $850,000," Gallant said. "I would also suggest that this entire story is false. Mr. Dumont ... do you continue to persist in saying (this)?"

Dumont replied: "As best as I can remember, my answer is yes," prompting the prosecutor to announce to Commissioner France Charbonneau that he would present further evidence later in the day to contradict Dumont's latest answer.

Tremblay's administration faced years of corruption allegations but Dumont's claims were the first to directly implicate the 70-year-old mayor.

Questions have since emerged about Dumont's past, including a QMI Agency investigation about questionable spending of public funds during Dumont's time working for Stephen Harper's Conservatives.

Between 2007 and 2010, Dumont worked as the chief of staff for three federal ministers: Jim Prentice, Josee Verner and Diane Ablonczy.

Records show that Dumont was spending more than important ministers in Harper's own cabinet.

Former Tory staffer back in hot seat at corruption inquiry

MONTREAL -- A corruption inquiry prosecutor accused a former federal Tory organizer Monday of lying about how much illicit cash he saw at the municipal party of disgraced former Montreal mayor Gerald Tremblay.

Martin Dumont, whose testimony in October was followed by Tremblay's resignation six days later, appeared shaken and red-faced as he was confronted with contradictory testimony from another witness.

Dumont had said a female staffer complained to him in 2005 about being asked to count $850,000 in cash at the headquarters of Tremblay's Union Montreal party.

The staffer, secretary Alexandra Pion, testified Monday that she did see a large number of $20 bills in a safe at the party office and was asked to count them.

But she also said she refused the request and that the amount of money was far less than $850,000.

Pion added that she has never met with or spoken to Martin Dumont and that she only learned of the $850,000 amount when he mentioned it at the inquiry in October.